At BRICS summit, Brazilian president advocates peace talks between Russia and Ukraine
President Lula said last Wednesday 23rd October that the conflicts between Russia and Ukraine, as well as between Israel, Hamas, and Hezbollah, have the “potential to become global.” He made this comment during a virtual participation at the BRICS summit held in Kazan, Russia. In front of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Mr. Lula advocated for the commencement of negotiations for a peace agreement with Ukraine but did not directly criticize Russia’s invasion of Ukrainian territory.
“At a time when we face two wars with the potential to become global, it is essential to revive our capacity to work together towards common goals,” he said. The Brazilian president participated virtually from the Alvorada Palace, the president’s official residence, due to a domestic accident he suffered over the weekend.
Mr. Lula said that “avoiding escalation and initiating peace negotiations is also crucial in the Ukraine-Russia conflict.” In addition to Mr. Putin, at least 29 heads of state or delegation representatives attended his address.
Last month, alongside China, the Brazilian government sought to create a peace proposal for the conflict that began in February 2022 following the Russian invasion. However, the proposal was rejected by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Regarding the conflict between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah, Mr. Lula quoted Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who said at the UN General Assembly that “Gaza has become the largest cemetery of children and women in the world.” “This madness is now spreading to the West Bank and Lebanon,” he said.
Mr. Lula, who has been critical of Israel in the Middle Eastern conflict, did not mention in his speech the Hamas terrorist attack on Israeli territory that occurred in October of last year.
On the economic front, Mr. Lula advocated that “the time has come to advance the creation of alternative payment methods for transactions” among BRICS countries.
“It’s not about replacing our currencies, but we need to work so that the multipolar order we aspire to is reflected in the international financial system,” said the president, stressing that the discussion can no longer be postponed.
He added that the national development banks of BRICS members “will establish credit lines in local currencies, which will reduce transaction costs for small and medium-sized companies.”
Currently, in the Brazilian president’s view, international financial flows function as “a reverse Marshall Plan,” continuing to “flow towards wealthy nations.”
“Emerging and developing economies are financing the developed world,” he said.
For Mr. Lula, BRICS is economically significant precisely because it breaks “with this logic.” He highlighted, for instance, the role of the New Development Bank (NDB), known as the BRICS Bank, led by former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff.
Regarding climate change, Mr. Lula argued that “there is no doubt that the greatest responsibility” in combating it “falls on wealthy countries,” given that their historical emissions “have culminated in the climate crisis that afflicts us today.”
“We need to go beyond the $100 billion annually promised and unfulfilled and strengthen measures to monitor the commitments made,” he said, referring to the promise made by wealthy countries in 2009 to direct $100 billion annually, starting in 2020, to tackle climate change. He acknowledged, however, that “emerging countries must also do their part” and that BRICS is “an indispensable actor in addressing climate change.”
Take care!
Carl Boniface
Source: Estevão Taiar — Brasília
P.S More news about how the BRICS meeting went, Venazuelan president Maduro's desire to join, including other nations and Palestine. Putins views!!!
Comments